


Yachi and the Kappa

by hobbit_hedgehog



Series: Fantasy Haikyuu Week 2018 [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Kappa, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-23
Updated: 2018-04-23
Packaged: 2019-04-27 01:03:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,460
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14414298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hobbit_hedgehog/pseuds/hobbit_hedgehog
Summary: Yachi makes a new friend during summer vacation.For Day Two of Fantasy Haikyuu Week: Japanese Mythology (Kappa)





	Yachi and the Kappa

**Author's Note:**

> Hey y'all, it's day 2 of the Fantasy Haikyuu Week! I'm branching out a bit today by writing something with Yachi and Hinata because I usually don't write for them and I thought it'd be fun. I hope you all enjoy it! There won't be a fic tomorrow, but if you check my tumblr, there will be vampire Suga cosplay pics!

It occurred to Yachi that—as she stared at the form lying on the ground in front of her—she might, at that moment, be suffering from heat stroke induced hallucinations.  That was definitely a thing, right?  Surely the August heat had gotten to her, that had to be it.  It just wasn't possible for a kappa—an actual _kappa_ —to be passed out in the middle of the path.

Yachi had been enjoying one of the last days of her summer break, taking a nice, brief hike through the woods near the apartment she shared with her mother.  She had finished her homework the day before, and decided that she needed to spend at least one day outside before she returned to school.  She had packed enough water bottles and snacks to last her for several hours (on the off chance that she got lost and really needed extra food), a first aid kit (it never hurt to be too prepared, really), and her camera into a backpack, then set off towards the woods. 

As she walked, she had mentally berated herself for potentially over-packing; she was only going out for an hour at most after all.  She had argued with herself that over-packing was, in fact, the way to go.  She had decided to revisit the argument with herself after the hike once she reached the tree line.  The first twenty minutes of the hike had been beautiful and uneventful.  Yachi stuck to the path, stayed hydrated, and made sure to take plenty of pictures. 

'This is actually going better than I thought,' Yachi thought, stowing her camera in her bag.  'I ought to go for walks like this more often.'

That had continued to be Yachi's train of thought right up until she came around a bend and nearly tripped over the unconscious kappa.  So there she was, staring down at a kappa with bright orange hair and wondering if she was suffering from heat stroke.  She really should have just stayed inside today.

'This has to be a small child in a costume,' Yachi thought, crouching down to look at the kappa.  'They probably became dehydrated walking around in this heat.'

Even as Yachi thought that, she couldn't help but notice the rise and fall of the kappa's chest, the way that its beak moved as it breathed in and out.  Yachi reached out with a trembling finger and ran the tip over the kappa's skin.  She yelped in surprise, tumbling backwards.  Scales, she had touched scales.  The kappa was becoming more and more real by the second.  She scrambled onto her knees and leaned closer to the kappa.  What Yachi had assumed was hair were actually the petals of an orange water lily.  It was sort of pretty in a way.  As Yachi reached out to touch the petals, the kappa let out a groan.  Yachi screeched, falling back again.  The kappa shifted, then fell still again.

Yachi could feel the panic rising inside of her.  If she helped the kappa, would it follow her home?  How would she explain that to her mother?  If she left the kappa alone, would it know that she didn't help it?  Would it try to track her down and get revenge because she didn't pour water into its plate?  Would it die?  Could she let something die?  Yachi's internal debate came to a sudden halt when the kappa let out another loud groaning noise.  The kappa cracked open one eye, then titled its head to look at Yachi.

"Please," he murmured in a hoarse voice, "water."

 Yachi reached into her backpack.  She pulled out one of the three water bottles and unscrewed the cap.  She wasn't sure how much water the kappa was going to need, so she just began pouring water into the shallow dish on the creature's head.  Snippets of lore flittered through Yachi's mind—kappas needed water to live, kappas sometimes killed people for fun, a kappa becomes incapacitated if you make it bow and the water drains out of the dish, if you help a kappa, it owes you a favor, kappas like cucumbers. 

It took several spluttering coughs for Yachi to realize that the water had begun to overflow from the kappa's dish and into the creature's mouth.  Yachi tilted the near empty water bottle up, setting it to the side.  The kappa coughed a few more times as he got onto his hands and knees.  Yachi scrambled to her feet and away from the kappa, ready to bolt at a moment's notice.  Surprisingly, the kappa didn't attack.  Instead, he got to his feet and grinned at Yachi.

"Oh man, I thought I was in some serious trouble there for a second," he said with a sunshine bright smile.  "I was walking back to the river when I got hit in the back of the head with a ball like BWAAAH!"

'Like bwah?' Yachi thought as the kappa continued to ramble on about getting hit.  'Aren't kappas supposed to talk old timey?'

"But yeah, if you hadn't come along, I probably would have died or something, so thank you!  My name's Hinata, by the way.  So, what do you want your favor to be?" the kappa finished, beaming.

Yachi stared at the kappa.  "Favor?" she asked.

Hinata nodded, "Of course!  You saved my life.  I owe you."

"You don't owe me!" Yachi exclaimed.  "Really, it's okay.  I'm just happy that you're fine now."

Hinata cocked his head to the side, a small amount of water sloshing out of the dish on his head.  Yachi did her best to keep a straight face.  "But it's tradition," Hinata said.  "What kind of kappa would I be if I didn't do something nice for you in return?  Kageyama would never let me live it down!"

'Well, that opens a whole new slew of problems,' Yachi thought.

She took a moment to weigh her options.  She could run, but then she'd have an angry kappa trying to return a kindness and that just wouldn't do.  What if he followed her to school?  She could accept and ask a favor from the kappa, but what if it was a trick?  No, kappas were loyal to the people who helped them, and besides, Hinata seemed nice enough.  Yachi looked up at the kappa, who had a bright look in his eyes and was bouncing in place with an excited energy that seemed infectious.  Before Yachi could overthink things any more, she spoke.

"Would you finish up my walk with me?"

Hinata stopped bouncing.  "You mean, carry you back through the woods?" he asked.

"No!  I mean, like, walking with me," Yachi explained, "like a walking buddy."

When the kappa didn't immediately reply, Yachi continued, "I'm almost done with my walk anyway if you didn't want to.  I just figured that this was a really easy request to fulfill and it'd be nice to have some company back through the woods-."

"Sounds good to me!" the kappa said.  He grabbed Yachi's hand and began marching down the trail.  "Let's go, Miss!"

"You don't have to call me 'Miss'," Yachi said, pulling her hand from the kappa's.  "'Yachi' works just fine."

"Yachi it is then!  So Yachi, what can you tell me about the ball that hit me?  It was white, yellow, and blue, and had the words 'Karasuno High School' written on it."

***

The hike went on for longer than Yachi had intended, but she had to admit, she had a blast.  Hinata was an excellent guide, pointing out all sorts of plants and animals that she never would have seen on her own.  He regaled her with stories about another kappa named Kageyama, who was perpetually frowning and had long ago earned the nickname "Grumpyama".  Yachi told Hinata about her mother and school.  Before long, Yachi found herself at the edge of the woods, looking back at Hinata.  Hinata shuffled from one foot to the other, looking at Yachi expectantly.

"You'll come back to visit, right?" he asked.

Yachi gave him a smile and a nod, "Of course!  School starts back up soon, but I promise I'll visit when I can!"

Hinata let out a cheer, jumping higher than Yachi imagined a kappa could, "I'll let Kageyama know you'll drop by!  It was nice to meet you, Yachi!"

Before Yachi could react, Hinata turned and ran back into the woods.  She stared after the kappa for a moment, then turned and walked out of the woods.  That night as she clicked through the photos on her camera, she paused on a certain photo.  It was of her and Hinata smiling at the camera with their eyes closed.  Yachi smiled at the camera.  That was definitely her favorite summer memory.


End file.
